Upcoming Kindle Fire Software Updates

I don't have kids, thus I don't particularly care about FreeTime, but I thought the original Kindle Fire HD product announcement said something about FT being available on every Kindle Fire. I don't think it specified 1st or 2nd generation.

@rickh57: True but the Nexus 7 supports USB OTG (Host Mode) which means you can connect USB Flash and HDD drives, Hubs, Keyboards, etc (including a USB SD Card reader and SD card). Not quite as convenient as straight up but makes it easy to swap things in and out. Others have even found ways to run large games (Bard's Tale with HD graphics {3.5Gb}) from USB.

@Arts&HistoryFan/Kindleworld: I'd stop quoting that link it's specifications are widly inaccurate and misleading.Example right off the bat is the "mono speaker" there are in fact 2 speakers in the Asus Google Nexus 7 that produce stereo sound (although very poorly placed on the same side when in landscape).They fail to add the $10-20 depending on day and/if/or sale for the Kindle charger and the $15 for advertisements, the fact that the 2 yr protection plan is 55 for the Kindle but only 28 from Walmart for the Nexus.

And as I pointed out to rickh57, no SD slot is correct but the Nexus 7 does support USB OTG (Host mode).

That said the Kindle is a great device for my wife and kids. Fits well with their needs and is easy enough for them. If a person is happy with Amazon alone (not counting rooting/sideloading/etc) then I would say Kindle for sure. If the person wants to a more customizable and less restricted experience I would definitely say the Nexus 7. Both devices are good for the crowd/users they are designed for. Just wanted to clear up a few misconceptions that came up in the thread there.

-=-Back on topic. Shame my eldest daughter was hoping for the FreeTime on her Kindle Fire gen1. Oh well, I'll point her to that Kid's Place app mentioned earlier. Looked pretty good.

Joe, "That link" ? (I didn't have one in that post, nor did I use one.)

99% of reports I've read cite one speaker on the Nexus -- even if there might be two inside one area and you can put on earbuds or headphones or external speakers and get it in stereo re the output.

Also read http://forums.androidcentral.com/google-nexus-7-tablet-forum/192888-nexus-7-speaker-issue.html

The users refer to "the speaker" throughout.

But I'm speaking in that comparison post, really, about the multimedia and HD entertainment value, rather than the tech-oriented's wish to set up 40,000 apps for themselves, because the apps are the thing with Google Nexus or any good, true Android device.

So is the smoother speed for some functions. That's why each block I typed ends with the type of processor and the Google Play store accessibility. Nothing inaccurate about it.

Wi-Drives and other storage+multi-device streaming are available for both the Kindle Fires (even the e-Inks) and the Nexus. It's a real boon as added storage with trouble-free simultaneous sharing of even heavy data streams from a unit with up to 64 GB on it.

We agree, though. The Kindle Fire is more for (really good) handling of HD (in reading also) entertainment. The other is for tech-types who favor many thousands of apps. But they do have to go for the $249 model, as the 8GB model won't hold enough for any serious apps person and the cost doesn't end at $249 -- there's the cost of a good, speedy SD card or a few also.

I have both the KFHD and Nexus 7 and plan to keep one of them. So far the Nexus 7 is winning on everything but sound. I am not an Android fan normally and I have an iPad I plan to keep. I really like the 7" tablet profile though for portability. I am running out of my 30 days and have not heard back from an email that I sent that was forwarded to the development team. I can say that as of today, with no specifics on firmware update, the KFHD is being returned. FWIW, I spent over 5 years on the device team at att and got paid to play with and test devices with all OSs. I have never been a fan of Android but I really like raw Jelly Bean. I would like to like the KFHD more but it has been very buggy for me and is very weak on web reading. Screen and sound of the KFHD are amazing.

T. Clark, It sounds like the Nexus would be much better for you, weaker audio or not. It has more features important to you.

But re weak web reading, while I use Dolphin HD more than anything else because the websites I like most still require Flash, I often switch to Amazon's 'Silk' browser when I want to use the Eyeglasses feature, which formats the main web article into a book-like presentation, larger fonts, nice layout, no ads, etc. A bit like Readability or Instapress at their best. I'm on very fast Comcast cable (25 mbps download) so I probably experience less lag than some, especially those on DSL with more basic plans.

The other thing is that you can try turning off web Acceleration if you go to places that aren't super popular, and your webpage loading will probably be faster.

I know which they might answer. They NEVER provide information that has been intentionally withheld from the product pages. It is pointless to ask here for information they have not yet decided to publish.

will we be able to chose our own default dictionary? i bought the merriam webster spanish to english dictionary because it led me to believe i could select it as my default, and i was extremely disappointed to discover otherswise. Part of my kindle use is to strengthen my spanish skills, but it is too hard to keep searching text on the internet when i read a spanish book, so i barely make any progress because i am forced to keep switching back and forth and find the correct translation.

Does anyone have any suggestions? I have had my Kindle Fire for 5 months...........been working great until yesterday and it would not turn on at all, no light nothing, even when I plugged in the charger, nothing..................does it have another battery I'm not aware of and if so, where is it? I've tried holding the power button down for 20-30 seconds..........nothing at all.Appreciate any help.